This assignment was fun, having to travel with maps only is a great way to experience a new way to go. Below is the content, and information i found on my trips. I went on the train and bus on two different days. One week day and one weekend.

Jazman

ROUTE NUMBER AND DESTINATION: Route 5 (TWU Campus and beyond) // Route 9 (East Denton County)

PHOTOS:

VIDEO: None

QUOTES: With the majority of the cities population being college students, the city normally sees a spike in ridership during the fall and spring months, however, that hasn’t been the case in recent months. What would the DCTA system become if the decline continues Denton?

• DCTA has seen Connect Bus ridership in Denton and Lewisville increase in the past few months.
• DCTA is working to modify the schedules that serve the UNT campus to better accommodate the class schedules in the Fall.
• Check out recent DCTA board reports for current ridership numbers that showcase an increase in ridership at RideDCTA.net.
• The decline in DCTA’s ridership has come since the company Lyft began assisting the University of North Texas with transporting students within a few miles of the university. Would you consider Lyft being harmful to the commuters DCTA normally sees during the seasons the institutions is in session?
• Last August, DCTA UNT entered a partnership with Lyft that provides UNT students with free rides.
• The program is part of a 10-year contract between DCTA and UNT, which has an end goal of finding innovative ways and methods to keep UNT students safe and provide transportation for students in and around campus.
• DCTA will continue to work with UNT to provide more useful and safe options for students when it comes to transportation, and UNT students should expect more services like this in the future.
• The city is based majorly around the UNT student body, in what ways could the DCTA bring the focus of college students, back to the buses and railways? What new ideas could the city come up with to increase ridership during the fall and spring? Has something already been discussed? If so, where can I find more information on this?
• DCTA has a large student ridership and makes it a priority to educate this rider segment of ways they can utilize the agency buses and A-train.
• DCTA partnered with the UNT to launch the “How to Get Around” campaign in which both organizations developed flyers, social media, website content, etc. that focuses on how UNT students can get around town using DCTA. Here is a link to view the current campaign information: https://www.dcta.net/unt-how-to-get-around.
• For city of Denton-specific ideas for student ridership, we recommend reaching out to them for further information.
• With a steady decline in ridership, would the DCTA come up with new operation hours? Possibly allowing people to do multiple jobs to cut back on the outgoing of needed revenue? What would be the compromise for keeping the bussing system even with a consistent decline?
• DCTA has seen Connect Bus ridership in Denton and Lewisville increase in the past few months.
• Check out recent DCTA board reports for current ridership numbers that showcase an increase in ridership at RideDCTA.net.
• In addition, the DCTA Board of Directors recently approved for the agency to launch a local government corporate (LGC) called the North Texas Mobility Corporation (NTMC) which provides many benefits to the agency, including:
• Providing the same employee benefits as the existing benefits being provided to bus operations staff;
• Allowing for improved localized control over strategy, training, utilization and performance management of employees;
• Offering the ability to ensure consistent internal communications, increased employee support, improved morale and a reduction of employee turnover;
• Improving the quality of the service being provided and customer service therefore enhancing passenger experience while improving overall operational cost effectiveness
• Busing is 2 percent lower compared to railways when it comes to commuters, why do you feel this is a trend? Could students take the railways to Denton and use Lyft as
• There are various mobility demands and needs from the variety of riders who use public transit.
• With so many mobility options, many commuters now have a vast array of transit options to utilize and will choose the best mode of transit that fits their lifestyle.

SOURCE CONTACT INFO: Adrienne Hamilton — ahamilton@dcta.net — I am not sure of her title, as she was passed to me through another source.

NOTES:

I was able to board this bus on Bell Ave. However, I later realized it was closer to board on University Dr. because it is the closest stop to UNT, and Bell Ave is closer to the train station.

Route 5 goes through downtown passing Backyard on Bell and TWU, then it takes the rider into Denton suburbs. This route is good during April’s Jazz Festival in Denton and other event’s the art district has.

This bus route hits one small construction issue on E. Windsor Dr., the detour makes everyone turn right. However, this route would turn to the right without the traffic, as it is listed on the map as it’s normal route. Due to no cars on the road at the time of the turn, I was not able to track this as an issue, as we made it to the next stop on-time.

Route 5 reached each scheduled destination within four minutes or less during of the time listed on the map as the estimated arrival time. This route is connected to the Downtown Denton Transit Center.

I took the train from DDTC Station to MedPark station, where I was unable to take photos the first time around, from fear of missing the re-board process, and I couldn’t afford to miss the train. I rode the train on a Saturday and there’s only on train on Saturday, which wouldn’t return for an nearly an hour and a half. The train goes south bound to Trinity Mills station, which is the ending of the A-Train and the start of DART.

While at the Trinity Mills station, A-Train riders are able to convert their ridership pass into a DART pass, so they’re able to continue into Dallas without having to buy more train fair. The A-train sits at the Trinity Mills station for 30-minutes, allowing the DART riders from two lines to switchover and convert their train fair as well, before hiding back to Denton.